The "World"--God's Judgment on the Church

Background.  In the Old Testament when the Children of Israel were operating in obedience, God used her to chastise the surrounding peoples.  When Israel was in disobedience, God used the surrounding peoples to chastise Israel. 

The “world” [that system of thought that organizes itself apart from reference to God], in America, intuitively senses the Church should be different from itself.  It needs the church to be different and is mightily disappointed when it’s not.  At present the Church in America is little different from the “world”.  Such an environment spawns “hopelessness” and an antagonistic attitude toward the Church—that’s judgment.

Within the Church there’s a pervasive sense of powerlessness.  That’s to be contrasted with the early church recognized by non-adherents as possessing the ability to “turn the world upside down” (Acts 17:6)—that’s judgment.  Presently a greater problem for the Church than the need to “turn the world upside down”, is the inability to turn their members “right side up”—bringing correction and instituting discipline.  In a word, there is little or no accountability, contributing to instability and immaturity—that’s judgment.

Insist on Accountability

We will not be able to have accountability in our government until we have accountability in the church.  There is a sense in which the church is committing lawlessness against its “calling”.  Therefore, is it strange that our government, almost at every level, is committing lawless actions? 

So what must we do?  To achieve maturity and stability self-promoting leadership, like Jonah of old, needs to be heisted overboard, that the fish of God’s judgment might swallow them up, affording them an opportunity to “come to their senses”.  That leadership left which has humbled itself [with fasting and praying] under the hand of Almighty God, will lead the people of God to become disengaged from the “world”.  (To minister to the “world” Christians must be separated from it.)

Two verses, amongst many, speak powerfully to this requirement:  (1) “And do not be conformed to this world [do not be shaped into its mold], but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God” (Romans 12:2) and (2) “Come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord.  Do not touch what is unclean, and I will receive you.  I will be a Father to you, and you shall be My sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty” (II Corinthians 6:17 & 18).

Ultimately we’re talking about a Church that “trembles” under the hand of Almighty God.  If the Church trembles, be sure the world at large will “tremble”.  City-changing, region-changing revival will begin to spring forth.  This doesn’t mean all will be sweetness and light.  It simply means the Church will rise to its true “calling” to be Christ’s representative in the earth.